AN: Hello everyone and welcome to this latest chapter of the story; I hope you are all well and have had a good week. As ever thank you very much to everyone who read the last chapter and especially those of you who reviewed it. So…

Guest – thank you. Yes, Freddie thought he was over her then she calls and he's back to square one; thankfully talking to Spencer seems to have helped him a little. As for not having seen the last of the blonde? Well she's still going to be at school there for another year and a half so I daresay her path will cross some of the group's again at some stage. Yes, Carly got hurt – an 'iSaved Your Life' semi-tie-in was what I was attempting to pull off with that last chapter. Certainly she misses Freddie but returning his feelings? Perhaps absence really has made the heart grow fonder or maybe she's moved on with her life but misses his friendship – or his affection. Maybe we'll find out in the future. As for her being behind reconciling 'Caddie' – tricky from where she is but not necessarily impossible. You're right about Sam being rather upset with her former best friend. It would be a journey for them to recover; again, who knows what the future may bring for them. Cat and Danny; yes, that Danny, meanwhile the stage kiss… that rather upset two of our girls. You are correct that Cat never really voiced her regret to Freddie. If only life would stay out of their way long enough for them to talk! Finally, yes to both: I DO intend to continue iAm Yours and write some more Creddie independent of it but since the end of the show I really have lacked the motivation to write on that pairing. Hopefully it will return in time.

Pbow – I'm pretty sure, from the show, that Beck knows exactly what he's doing; I think he enjoys making Jade jealous and possessive. As for Cat – another obstacle… IF she still wants Freddie now she's met Danny…

Challenge King – thank you. Freddie really did need to talk and finally put the whole Lindsey/rape thing behind him and heal so that he could move on. Again, I wanted to work iSYL into the story somehow; I hope it worked.

Fanfic-Reader-88 – obviously it wasn't quite like the canon episode but yes, Carly got hurt but in this one she managed to avoid the worst of the impact. And yes, about Jade, she fears Tori making a play for either Beck or Freddie – so she thinks that she has two reasons to dislike the newcomer.

Agent-M – I'm glad you loved it. It didn't exactly coincide on the two shows (iSYL aired around Presidents' Day whereas the Pilot premiered after the 2010 KCAs) but they were close enough that I thought I'd rejig it a little. Yes, Spencer was the best bet; Freddie needed a trusted adult to speak to and Spencer seemed to be the closest thing available to him. Teddie is my OTP and I just love those two together but this is supposed to be a Freddie/Cat story – and let's not forget he and Jade were getting rather cosy a few chapters ago. What a dilemma for him!

Guest – As I said above they didn't quite coincide in TV airings but close enough for me to rejig it a bit, especially with the whole butterfly effect and life playing out differently for the iCarly trio.

ilovebade – poor Tori. I'll see what I can do with the Bade for you.

OneHorseShay - yes a little Creddie friendship and Spencer acting like a grown-up; he was smart enough to graduate college and get into law school so he must have something about him after all. Personally I think Jade has always cared for those who are important to her - particularly Cat but certainly she and Freddie have bonded somewhat as this story has progressed. Me, putting Teddie in a story? Imagine that! I just find it hard to believe that those two wouldn't give one another a second look.

That is everyone so let's get on with the tale…

Chapter 12: The Bird Scene

6829 Camrose Drive, Los Angeles

Thursday, 11th February 2010.

Cat lay on her front on her bed; the red-dyed haired girl was flicking through the pages of a magazine while resting her chin on the palm of her left hand as she waited for her hair to dry. Having been caught out in a brief but heavy rain shower the previous day her hair had become a little too limp to hold its current style so she decided to simply wash and comb out the curls that she had had done before Christmas, restoring it to its usual straight-hanging self. She wasn't giving the articles her full attention as she was focussing quite a lot of her thought on the romantic entanglements in life at Hollywood Arts, and particularly her own.

The cupcake-loving teen had been rather put out by the impromptu stage kiss between Tori and Freddie during Tuesday's class and had returned home from school in a pique of annoyance; she sulked through dinner before taking Nona's advice and getting out of the house for a while. Cat had decided that a trip to the mall was in order and was delighted when she came across Danny again; the black-haired boy took little persuasion to buy her another smoothie.

The Sherwood student had managed to pluck up the courage, later on during their talk, to ask her out on a proper date; her thoughts centring on Freddie and Tori meant that she had accepted without hesitation and was looking forward to seeing a movie with him the next night and, if all went well, she was hoping that they might see one another on the Saturday as well (with her parents still in Idaho and Jade still grounded). Much to her grandmother's delight, the fifteen-year-old girl had returned home in much higher spirits than she had left.

Hollywood Arts High School, Los Angeles, California

Friday, 12th February 2010.

Freddie locked his car and was making his way across the parking lot when he spotted two girls getting out of another car; he smiled as he recognised them as the Vega sisters (specifically he smiled as he recognised Tori) before his smile was replaced by a frown as the younger sister stumbled and fell to the ground under the weight of her books, binders and other materials that she was lugging into school, particularly with Trina wielding nothing but a cup of coffee and leaving her behind, seemingly unaware of the younger girl's plight. He hurried over to his classmate.

"Hey, are you ok?"

"Huh? Oh Freddie, hey. Yeah I just… overbalanced," she tried to brush off the incident, feeling rather embarrassed that the handsome teen had seen her in such an undignified state.

"Let me take them," he seized the bulk of her load and took it from her, allowing her to get back to her feet.

"Thanks," she said gratefully, flashing him a radiant smile, one that he returned, and flipping her hair a little in an attempt to get it back into a presentable state before dusting herself down.

"Tori!" the elder Vega drawled from the school entrance, looking back and seeing her sister a distance away, "come on!"

"I guess that's our cue to go in," Tori commented with a sigh and the two headed over to join the junior girl. "Did you not see me fall down in the parking lot?" she snapped at her sister as the two entered the main building together.

"It was very funny," the elder Vega conceded in a condescending manner. "Oh, hello you," she simpered as she spotted the muscular young man, who she hadn't really met before, by her sister's side.

"I wasn't trying to be…" Tori began indignantly before Trina gasped as she looked behind them.

"The new play roster!" she announced with delight. "Hold my coffee," she plonked the cup down on top of the other things Tori was still holding. "Move!" she instructed the students milling around the noticeboard, ignoring their complaints as she picked up a list of the forthcoming productions.

"Oh," she laughed. "These are so good!"

"What's so good?" Freddie asked.

"The list of plays for the new semester," the deluded diva explained. "Oh my God, I am perfect for all of these!"

"Is Moonlight Magic on there?" Tori asked.

"Oh right, that's the one André's written the music for," Freddie remembered.

"Yeah, and he wants me to try out for the lead," Tori smiled at the prospect.

"You?" Trina laughed scathingly. "Why?"

"Take your coffee and go," Tori told her threateningly.

"Oh, somebody fell down on the wrong side of the parking lot," the older sister mocked, ruffling her hair as she departed.

"So, that's Trina," Freddie observed as they made their way towards Tori's undecorated locker.

"Yeah, my sister. Lucky me," the sarcasm was unmissable in her tone.

"Oh, hey Jade," Freddie greeted the darker brunette as she passed them heading the other way.

"Freddie," she completely ignored the brown-haired girl at his side. "I'll see you in class in a few minutes," she called over her shoulder.

"I don't think she likes me," Tori understated.

"She'll come around in time," he tried to assure her, flashing his boyish grin at her; she opened her locker and they began loading the items in. "You know, you should probably put a shelf or two in here. Anyway, here we go; you're all set," the tech genius commented as they finished the task.

"Thanks. Alright, my locker is filled. I feel complete."

"Not yet; you need to customise it first," he told her. Everyone does, it's like a tradition here," his eyes shone a little at the concept.

"Oh well, what did you do for yours?" she asked him.

"Here," he took her hand gently, unthinkingly and led her to his locker, showing the laptop lid design of the locker door. "So it's like opening my pear top every time I go to my locker," he grinned. "Oh, hey guys," he smiled as he spotted André and Robbie by the musician's locker; he dropped the girl's hand quickly as the pair eyed them curiously. Tori had to work hard to suppress a look of disappointment as the innocent contact ended, particularly so abruptly.

They returned his greeting and were just starting to make their way over to join the pair when Lane called out to them. "Hey André, Robbie; that squirrel's back in my office again."

"I'll get the net," the songsmith sighed in resignation.

"I'll get the nuts," the ventriloquist added and the two departed leaving a very confused brunette staring after them.

"Weird chizz happens here," Freddie shrugged by way of explanation. "Oh, I'll see you later," he noted as the bell rang and they made their ways separately to class.

"Bye," she called happily, smiling at his retreating back.

Sikowitz's Classroom

Cat and Jade were on stage performing a scene in front of their classmates; it was part of a class production that would be taking place the following week.

"Betsy! Betsy!" Jade put on an exaggerated Southern-state accent as she spoke to Cat, who bore a large, stuffed pig; it was almost as big as the little red-head herself. "That animal's delicious flesh can keep us all alive for another week!" she protested.

"I don't want to be alive without Poncy," Cat retorted in a similar accent. "This pig is everything to me that my daddy never was, and I'll…" she paused as mentioning her daddy brought to mind her parents' continued absence, an absence that would end very soon; in fact they were expecting to be home the next day. Her smile at that thought faded almost instantly as her teacher hurled a ball at her head from across the room; it hit her, sending her to the floor.

"Sikowitz!" the pink-streak haired girl complained.

"What the hell did you do that for?" demanded Freddie as he leapt from his seat; after snapping at the teacher he rushed onto the stage to help the girl up.

"Oh come on," he defended himself. "A truly great actor can stay in the scene no matter what's happening around her."

"He's a whack job," Freddie muttered in Cat's ear; she forgot the pain of the impact for a moment as she giggled at his description while he helped her get to her feet again.

"But it really hurt," she complained aloud at her teacher before the bell rang. "Ooh, lunch, yay!" she cried happily, leaving Freddie behind when she skipped from the stage, collecting her bag and leaving the room before anyone else could move. He and Jade traded a glance and a shrug before heading back to their places to pick up their things.

"Learn your lines; I want everyone off book tomorrow," Sikowitz called after them.

"Tomorrow's Saturday," Tori noted as she caught up with Freddie.

"True; I'm not sure he ever knows what day it is though," the boy observed quietly. "You want to come to lunch with us?"

"Sure, just let me… argh!" she cried as a ball hit the wall beside her, knocking a picture off it. She turned and snapped at Sikowitz, "What was that for? I'm not acting right now!"

"We need to chat," he told her.

"And 'Tori can I have a word?' doesn't work for you?" the tech producer snapped. The teacher just folded his arms and glared at the teen. "See you at lunch in a few minutes," he told her, tapping her upper arm encouragingly as he left.

"What's up?" Tori asked, approaching the stage, on which Sikowitz was stood.

"I hear you signed up to audition for a play, Moonlight Magic."

"Yes, André wrote the music for it and he wants me to play the lead," she explained.

"You should," the acting teacher encouraged, drawing a brief smile from the girl before… "but you can't," he then shot her down.

"Huh?" Tori asked.

"Not until you pass The Bird Scene. Every student here must successfully complete it before they can audition for any and all school productions." He handed her the script for the scene and she left for lunch, passing Cat on the way out; she gave the redhead a surprised glance at seeing her return and was a little perturbed when the shorter girl, usually so bright and bubbly, passed her without speaking at all.

"Uh, are you ok, Cat?" she posed the question.

"Oh yeah, I just forgot to ask a question about the homework," the red velvet-haired girl explained, sparing Tori a quick glance in response to her inquiry before re-entering the classroom. "Hey Sikowitz, about the homework will we…" she stopped and squealed as another ball was thrown in her direction; she then fled the room.

Asphalt Café.

André took a seat at the gang's usual table; Freddie, Beck and Robbie were already there, though none of the girls had yet joined them.

"You know where I could buy a pair of ballet slippers?" the dreadlocked teen asked the table. Freddie suppressed a wince at the question; fortunately Beck distracted the attention of the others by speaking up sarcastically,

"No I don't but I know where you can get yourself a pretty skirt and some lip gloss."

"Please tell me you get those for Jade," the Seattle-born teen joked, earning an appreciative chuckle from the other two boys and a mild glare from his Canadian friend.

Rex 'laughed'. "That was a good one Freddie," he noted.

"Why do you need ballet slippers," Beck asked his friend.

"'Cause I signed up for ballet," André replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Isn't that kind of girly?" Robbie asked. Freddie became very interested in his bag in order to hide the look and flush growing on his face at the conversation.

"Yep, just one big room full of girls – and me," the songsmith noted smugly. "You guys picking up what I'm putting down?"

Beck and Rex nodded along; Robbie looked confused until Beck explained the idea of him being the sole guy surrounded by girls who dance. Robbie suddenly had the urge to sign up himself.

"How about you man?" Beck was asked.

"I can't. Jade and I signed up for salsa dancing already," he explained.

"What about you Freddie?"

"I don't have to," the Slap co-creator replied, cracking a smile. "I got back credit for dance because of some classes that mom made me take when I was younger so I can take some different classes in those slots. Score one for the crazy mom," he muttered. "I think Cat's decided to go for tap dancing," he commented thoughtfully, "I haven't heard of anyone else who's signed up for ballet."

"Well I'm sure there'll be plenty of girls," André stated confidently.

6829 Camrose Drive, Los Angeles

Saturday, 13th February 2010.

Cat curled up as she lay on one of the couches in her Nona's house as the pair watched TV. The two had talked earlier in the day as the girl was eager to share the details of her date the previous night, describing Danny as a nice guy who had been kind and courteous throughout the evening; she had enjoyed dinner, the movie, and his company, so much so that they had prolonged the date by having a second bite to eat afterwards before finishing off with a couple of rounds of smoothies before he walked her home. The red velvet haired girl's grandmother was happy for her, and not displeased by the news that Cat would be seeing him again this evening as well; in the meantime grandmother and granddaughter were content to spend a quiet afternoon in one another's company.

Eventually, though, the older lady reminded her, it was time the teenager to get ready for her date. Cat bounced to her room to begin planning her outfit; she opted for her cute pink top with medium blue jeans and shin-length boots before taking a quick shower and getting dressed and picking up e small purse with a shoulder-strap, which she looped over her head so that it hung from the left-hand side of her neck but the purse itself nestled next to her right side.

"I'm going now; I won't be too late. Bye Nona," she called from the doorway to the living room before heading for the front door.

"Bye cupcake, have a nice time," her grandmother called, smiling at the girl's happiness.

Hollywood Plaza, 2011 North Highland Avenue, Los Angeles, California

The teenager arrived and took a cursory glance around the Food Court; it was where they had agreed to meet to begin the evening. As she was unable to see him she simply opted to buy herself a smoothie and wait at a table for his arrival.

The black-haired boy smiled as she spotted the vivid red hair of the girl he liked. He walked over to the table and stood behind her, unseen and undetected due to the general hubbub of the area (coupled with the girl's ability to focus so much on her drink) and casually stood behind her left shoulder, reaching out to tap her right with his right hand. She looked around, confused as she didn't see anyone stood there before looking to her left and looking up to his grinning face.

"Daniel!" she squealed, standing and flinging her arms around the boy; thankfully her ninety-pound frame meant that she barely rocked him back, let alone knocking him off his feet as he returned the hug.

"Hey Cat, did you miss me?" he asked teasingly and with humour in his tone.

"I did," she admitted, "I was really looking forward to seeing you again."

He waited for her to pick up her smoothie before taking her hand and leading her, to her surprise, to one of the mall's diners; he wanted to treat the girl to something a little more upmarket than the Food Court this time. They shared some wings before he ordered ribs and fries, Cat opted for chicken and salad, though they did sample a little of each other's.

"So where now," she asked curiously as Danny took her hand again after they left and led her, to her confusion, away from the mall's movie theatre; in fact he seemed to be heading for the exit.

"Oh, one of my friends' parents are away so he's having a little party and I thought we'd go and hang there for a while – if that's ok with you? If not we can see a movie or something."

"Uh sure, a party sounds cool," she agreed, smiling at the slightly different way to spend a Saturday evening and let him steer her to his car, in which he covered the short distance to his friend's home.

The party was starting to warm up as the teenagers arrived; Danny introduced the girl to his friends, all of whom made her welcome.

She had a good time, mostly staying close to her date, though she did talk to some of the others, particularly the girls, throughout the evening, continually declining offers of both beer and weed whenever they were being passed around (as, she noted with slight surprise, did Danny; he would later explain that he wasn't interested in using them, though if he was being truly honest he may have added that it would be something else to worry about if the cops pulled them over at any point). Finally, after a few hours, she received a text from her Nona, asking when she would be back, which she interpreted as a suggestion that it was time to come home. Her date agreed to take her home (intending to return afterwards) and drove her back home, getting out of the car when she did and walking her to the door.

"Thanks Danny," she told him coyly, "I had a really good time tonight."

"Me too," he confirmed, before leaning in and planting a quick kiss on her lips. He pulled away and cast a nervous look towards her, fearing that he'd overstepped the mark doing so on only their second real date. He was relieved to see that she was smiling broadly at him and gently took his left hand in her two.

"Goodnight," she whispered, giving him one last smile before releasing his hand and heading inside.

Sikowitz's classroom.

Monday, 15th February 2010.

The insane teacher warmed the class up with a quick 'drive-by acting exercise', in which he gave one scenario to the whole class and they improvised a few lines until Tori arrived in the room.

"Alright, very good, quiet down," he instructed them. "Now that we're all," he began to jig, "loosey and goosey," Freddie threw him a look that mingled disgust and bewilderment at the statement, "the time has come for our newest student to tackle…" he began to stamp rapidly on the stage, encouraging the class to do likewise in their seats to produce a sort of drumroll, "The Bird Scene!" he declared. "Tori, the stage is yours, though you can't take it home," he told her. She looked at him in confusion.

"Um, can I ask you a quick question before I start?" the brunette asked, earning a loud, theatrical groan from the pink streak haired girl in the front row.

"Just do your best," she was encouraged by the balding Sikowitz.

"Ok," she set her script down and began in an accent similar to the one Cat and Jade had used in their scene the previous Friday.

"It was 1934 when my husband left me, alone. Livin' on the prairie was a dreary existence. No telephone, no radio. Only a large, majestic bird with whom I shared my feelings," The new student glanced around the class; to her surprise the room was filled with completely impassive faces. I thought Freddie might have given me a smile or something, she thought in mild annoyance. She was unsurprised that the one student who did express an emotion was Jade; the gothic brunette wore a look of abject boredom.

"One day when I was feeling low I said to him, 'Oh bird, you can fly, you can soar miles from this lonely place, yet you stay; why?' And apparently my question rang true, for that afternoon the bird left– and so went my spirit." She bowed her head sorrowfully and waited for a few seconds, surprised when she did not receive the expected round of applause for her performance.

"How was that?" she asked in her normal voice to the silent room.

"What do you mean?" Sikowitz sought to establish.

"Did I do the scene right?" she persisted.

"Oh no, not at all," he told her.

"Ok, then what did I do wrong?" the confused girl sought to establish.

"You'll have to perform the scene again tomorrow and get it right, or else you cannot be in André's play or any other," he told her simply as handed her the script and steered her to her seat.

"But can you tell me what I did wrong?" she demanded again.

"No I can't," he brushed off as he returned to the front.

"I don't get any feedback?" she was stunned.

"That is correct," he confirmed.

"But…"

"Drive-by acting exercise; you're all terrified dolphins!" he called. The class, minus Tori, began hopping around and squealing like dolphins, though she did notice a slightly regretful look in the former Seattle native's eye as he glanced in her direction between bounces.

"Oh come on," she urged the sophomore group as they arrived at the lockers. "How am I supposed to do the scene right if no one will tell me what I did wrong?" she demanded. "I thought you guys were my friends." She said pathetically.

"I'm not your friend," Jade smiled at her before taking Beck's hand and leading her boyfriend away from the group and towards the vending machines.

"I was hoping we could be more than friends," Rex piped up; Tori looked disgusted.

"It's so gross how he's always hitting on every girl," Cat observed.

"I never hit on you," the puppet pointed out.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked in outrage.

"You guys, my problem?" Tori reminded them.

"Number one rule of the Bird Scene; no one is allowed to help you," Beck explained, drink in hand.

Tori looked to Freddie for support; he sighed as he deliberated on how much he could get away with saying; his annoyance with the balding teacher meant he was in the mood to disclose a little too much…

"What did you think of the scene?" he asked her.

"I thought I did it well, until the end when none of you applauded or gave any sort of reaction," she lamented, frowning at him as if to demand a response.

"So this is what you did with your locker?" Jade interrupted, trying to make sure that nobody inadvertently let anything slip to the new student. She looked at the white, dry-erase board the brunette had attached to the front of it; it simply read "Tori's Locker."

"Yeah, see there's a bunch of colourful pens in a convenient cup so whoever wants to can write or draw whatever they want," she told them brightly.

"You're supposed to decorate it yourself," Beck pointed out.

"It's a Hollywood Arts tradition," added Cat, feeling she could smile at and support the new girl at least a little bit now that she, herself, was dating somebody, though she still wasn't above a little criticism of her now and then.

"Well, what's wrong with letting other people be expressive on my locker?" Tori asked them.

"Uh, for one thing, they can do that," Freddie nodded and pointed in its direction; Jade had just finished adding the word "STUPID" in bright red pen between "Tori's" and "Locker".

She sighed and took the board down. "Come on, someone tell me how to do The Bird Scene or I'm going to cry."

"We can't," Cat informed her and turned to leave for her tap dancing class.

"Yeah, man up!" Robbie complained.

"Time for our first ballet class," André walked past and announced excitedly.

"Ooh, ballet!" the curly-haired ventriloquist cried and left with the dreadlocked songsmith.

Tori leant back on her once again bare locker with a glum expression on her face; just she and the former iCarly remained.

"You thought it was good?" Freddie asked her sympathetically.

"I did… wasn't it?" she asked him eagerly yet with concern and more than a touch of desperation in her voice, gripping his arm and giving him her undivided attention in the hope that he would spill the secrets of the scene.

"It doesn't matter what I think," he shrugged and made for his own next class; he looked over his shoulder at her as he departed and called out, "but for the record, I thought it was great."

She watched him go, feeling more confused than ever.

Rec Room, Hollywood Arts High School

Tuesday, 16th February 2010.

Freddie and Cat had, independently, arrived early this morning. The tech genius spied his friend, dressed for the cooler weather in a red and blue checked shirt and her dark blue skinny jeans, as he crossed the parking lot and called out to her.

"Hey Cat, how's things?"

"Oh hey Freddie," she smiled. "I'm good thanks. Here early, that's buses for you," she giggled; he nodded and smiled.

"Do you want to hit the rec room before class?" he'd offered; she agreed excitedly and they spent a pleasant quarter-of-an-hour playing ping pong together before the bell sounded for their first class.

"What do you think of Tori?" she asked curiously as they walked towards the lockers.

"She seems nice," he shrugged." Certainly moreso than her sister," he thought back on the previous week when he had encountered the elder Vega.

"I guess," Cat agreed weakly.

"You don't like her?" Freddie was surprised as it was almost unheard of for the bubbly girl to not like somebody.

"No, she seems fine," the red-head agreed.

"You're not bothered about that stage kiss are you?" he asked shrewdly.

"Of course not," she laughed it off in her inimitable way. "Oh look, Jade's here. Hi," she called to her gothic friend, smoothly, if abruptly, curtailing the conversation between the two of them.

The Slap Mobile

Tori Vega: So ready for The Bird Scene this time. Gonna KILL IT.

Mood = Determined.

Sikowitz's classroom.

The kids had another morning class with the balding acting coach; Tori would again be performing the scene for them and hoped that she would be able to pass it this time. She still felt annoyed and upset that none of her new friends had been willing to help her out with it – and was more bothered by Freddie than any of the others; he had liked it but not applauded, was he trying to give an abstract hint? What was going on?

"So, are you ready?" the tech producer asked as he entered the room; the other students were milling around waiting for the teacher's arrival.

"Oh, I'm way past ready," she declared as Robbie, Beck and Jade gathered around the pair. "Sikowitz wants The Bird Scene; I'm going to give him The Bird Scene. I've got props, a backdrop and just to kiss up a little I even got Sikowitz…" she reached into her bag, "two large coconuts."

"Those are good ones," Beck observed; due to where the brunette was holding them he drew an annoyed look from his girlfriend.

Freddie shook his head and took a seat near the back next to Cat. "None of that matters," he muttered under his breath; Tori didn't hear him.

The bell rang and Sikowitz entered the room through the door by the stage.

"Alright," he began before stumbling; he looked around trying to discover what he fell over while his charges just looked bemused. "We have much to do today, but first… Tori, The Bird Scene."

"I'm ready and, before I begin, I'd like you to have these two large coconuts," she handed the bribe to the balding man.

"Wonderful," he said appreciatively. "You know, their milk gives me visions."

"I've heard," she replied.

"Ok, Tori," he gestured.

She mounted the stage and unveiled the backdrop she had suspended, rolled up, above the dry-erase board at the front. The brunette then slipped a pair of glasses on from a chain around her neck. "And, I am ready," she announced before repeating the scene to his call of "Delightful, action".

This time, upon reaching the line about the 'large, majestic bird' she wound a small crank, lowering a stuffed bird into view. When she complained that the bird left me, she flung it through the window. Jade sighed in response, though next to her Beck smiled appreciatively.

"So, was that good?" she asked them.

"Exactly what are you asking me?" Sikowitz sought to clarify.

"You know, did you like what I did with the scene?"

"Sure."

"So did I get it right?"

"Oh no, you failed – again."

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Freddie wince slightly. Tell me what I'm doing wrong! she attempted to will the boy telepathically. Unfortunately, she failed at that too.

"Hey, watch where you throw your props," the janitor complained through the window, throwing the bird back into the room; she had to duck to evade it.

Cat had just stopped off at her locker and was on her way to lunch; the girl was hungry and so quickly ascended the main staircase, stopping only to send a quick text to Jade before heading to meet her at the Grub Truck.

"Cat!" Tori called, approaching from the left hand staircase.

"Hey," the child-like teen smiled, lapsing back into her friendly nature and hoping to get on with the new girl, particularly as she was becoming a fixture in their group.

"You have to try something," Tori delved into her bag.

"Handcuffs?" the little red-head was even more confused than normal.

"Uh huh, put them on one wrist," the brunette urged.

"Ok," she smiled happily at the new game they were playing.

"Good, and now we lock the other part around here," the taller girl attached them to the handrail.

"Fun," the cupcake loving girl observed naively.

"Ok, now try these."

"Ooh, candy!" she gasped, holding out her right palm; Tori tipped some of the treats into it.

Cat eagerly swallowed them. "Mmm, these are so…" the aftertaste kicked in, "so hot!" she wailed before spitting them out. "What are these?"

"Choo-choo peppers," Tori grinned malevolently.

"Aah! They're burning my mouth!"

"I know, want some water?" the brunette asked innocently, holding a bottle out of the girl's reach.

"Yes!" cried Cat, reaching desperately for the bottle.

"Tell me the secret of The Bird Scene," Tori demanded.

"I can't and I need water," Cat was almost in tears.

"Oh fine," Tori relented, incapable of being an evil mastermind. She handed the captive girl the bottle she was brandishing and trudged dejectedly down the stairs to her locker (now 'decorated' with a single pink, horizontal stripe just above the lock).

"Wait, Tori," Cat, still handcuffed to the handrail, called after her before thirst became imperative again for her. "Water!" she gasped and took another swig.

Freddie walked up behind the miserable brunette as she took her frustration out on her things.

"What are you doing?" he asked playfully, flashing his boyish grin.

"Angrily throwing books in my locker," she explained, "can't you tell?" She slammed the locker shut.

"Have you decided on how to decorate it yet?"

"Yes. Look, I put a stripe on it. See the stripe?"

"I see the stripe," he smiled, folding his arms and leaning against the neighbouring lockers.

"Well I don't know what to do," she complained.

"It'll come to you in a moment of inspiration," he assured her.

"So, anyway," she continued casually, "about The Bird Scene…"

He sighed. "Again, I thought your scene was good – but what I think doesn't matter. Later," he smiled and left. Luckily for Cat he chanced a glance up the stairs and spotted her still cuffed to the railing. He sighed and shook his head, wondering how on earth the girl had found herself in the predicament and made his way over to her.

"Oh, thank God, Freddie, can you help me out here?" she pleaded.

"I think so," he flashed her a smile and took a paperclip from his jacket pocket. "Time to put what I learnt from Sam to good use," he muttered as he knelt by her, straightened the wire and gently took her hand to hold the wrist steady. He jiggled the wire for a few seconds before…

"Yay, I'm free!" The girl flung herself on him in a grateful hug before letting him go. "I'm hungry – and I still need water," she commented before swiftly heading off for lunch on her own.

"Bye," he called after her with a wave.

"How did you get her out of those?" Tori demanded as she suddenly saw that her captive had gone and that the boy held one end of the cuffs in his hand. "They're police issue; I 'borrowed' them from my dad."

"I know a girl," he told her cockily before frowning as he quickly put two and two together. "You coming to lunch? I think you owe someone an apology," he concluded with a searching look.

"You're right," she conceded with a groan and followed him to their regular table in the Asphalt Café.

The Slap Mobile

Tori Vega: Just thought of a way to find out WHAT'S UP with The Bird Scene…

Mood = Sneaky

Cat had happily accepted the new student's apology, though Jade had narrowed her eyes menacingly on learning the story.

"It's between them, leave it," Beck told his girlfriend; she didn't look in a mood to agree with him but let it slide for the time being, leading to a peaceful lunch for the tenth graders.

"Hey Freddie," Tori greeted him brightly as she cornered the boy by his locker later in the day.

"Hey," he returned with a smile. "It's good to see you in a better mood."

"So I was just wondering: how did you get out of dance class?" she demanded. "All the others are doing it."

"Oh, my mom made me take some classes," he left it intentionally vague, "when I was younger; I think… I know," he amended, "that she wishes I'd been born a girl," he frowned at the thought and the fact that he was admitting to himself, "but it means that I can do some extra music classes in the time. I have a natural aptitude for Spanish too so I did extra singing instead of those classes last year," he elaborated. "But enough of my life story, how are you?"

"I'm feeling a little stressed," she admitted sadly, hoping to play on his sympathies.

"Come on, talk to Freddie," he smiled.

"Thanks," she flipped her hair off her shoulders and gave him her best puppy dog look as she continued, "It's this whole Bird Scene thing."

Freddie palmed his forehead. "Tori, I really have told you all that I can about it." Then he placed his hands gently on her shoulders, encouraging her to meet his eyes. "Once again, I'll tell you that I thought you did great today, but it's not my opinion that counts." He gave her a meaningful look; she countered with a confused one.

Wednesday, 17th February 2010.

The Slap Mobile

Tori Vega: Ahhh! About to try The Bird Scene AGAIN – WISH ME LUCK!

Mood = Fierce

Sikowitz's classroom.

André and Robbie hobbled into class, complaining about the pain of every step; the light blue streak haired girl gave them a curious look as she wondered exactly what they had done during their morning classes to get into such a situation.

She didn't have long to dwell on it, however, as Sikowitz followed them into the room. "Happy birthday!" he declared cheerily.

"Whose birthday is it?" Cat asked excitedly.

"Somebody's, somewhere."

"That's so true," she gasped as she realised the veracity of the statement.

"Where's Tori?" he asked, seemingly oblivious to the fact that someone had curtained off the stage. The newcomer stuck her head through the gap in the curtains.

"Right here," she told him.

"Oh," he laughed as he jumped off the stage in surprise. "You brought curtains."

"Let's do this," she replied determinedly.

"Very good. Ladies and gentlemen, once again, The Bird Scene starring Tori…" he paused as he reached the back of the room.

"Vega," she supplied.

"Vega," he repeated.

Tori opened the curtains; the backdrop was still in place and she had downloaded an instrumental soundtrack to accompany the scene.

She performed it again, this time dressed in period grab and summoning a cockatoo to fly in and out when she reached the appropriate remarks about the bird. Sikowitz was impressed, though he asked Beck to confirm that he too could see it.

"That… was impressive," the teacher conceded at the end.

"So did I get it right?" she asked excitedly; out of the corner of her eye she again spotted Freddie's wince. What's wrong with the question, she wondered.

"Nope," he returned; Jade smirked happily at the girl's continued woes.

"But… but I just…" Tori stammered before finding her confidence. "I did too get it right," she insisted.

"Tori, listen…" Sikowitz began before she cut him off.

"I'm not trying to be disrespectful, but do you know how hard I worked on this scene? I made this costume, I downloaded special prairie music. I even trained that crazy cockatoo to fly in and out of that window on command! Not now," she snapped as it flew in; it took off again. "Look, I know you're a great acting teacher and everything, but I don't care what you say. The scene I just did was good. And I'm proud of it no matter what anybody thinks."

She was shocked when the class, led by Freddie, began to applaud; even Jade joined in.

"What?" she asked in total bewilderment.

"You just passed The Bird Scene," Sikowitz declared before explaining the scene's purpose; to teach an actor to ignore the approval of others and to believe in their own choices.

"So that's why you said you liked it but it didn't matter what you thought?" she muttered to Freddie as she sidled over to his side.

"Yep, it only mattered what you thought," he smiled at her.

"I wish you'd told me that," she grumbled.

"I'm sure you do," he smirked back.

"Drive-by acting exercise, you're all elderly people walking barefoot on broken glass. Action."

Freddie offered Tori his arm, she took it and they began shuffling painfully across the room together; Jade threw them a glance filled with displeasure though neither of them noticed. The mean girl was surprised that Cat actually offered the duo a slight smile when she spotted them.

The Slap Mobile

Tori Vega: FINALLY… I… am… VICTORIOUS!

Mood = Pumped.

Tori stood in front of her open locker; Cat, Freddie, Beck, Jade and Trina stood on the other side of its open door from her; she was hiding her decoration from them for the time being.

"You guys ready?" the smiling brunette asked.

"Hurry!" Cat urged.

"Uh-huh," the elder sister confirmed.

The younger Vega closed the locker revealing a cityscape backdrop with the words "Make It Shine" written over the bottom of it.

"Make what shine?" Trina asked her sister in confusion.

"It's the song I sang in the Big Showcase," Tori reminded her.

"Oh." "Ok," "Right," her fellow students nodded their recollection.

"Whatever," Jade repeated.

"'Cause, you know, that's what got me here in the first place."

"I don't like it," Jade commented.

"Maybe the words should be bigger," Cat suggested. The others began to add their own recommendations before Tori interrupted them.

"Uh, uh, uh," she began, "I believe in my own choice and I don't need approval from others."

"And Tori has learnt the ways of The Bird Scene," Freddie smiled at his friend. Jade narrowed her eyes a little at them.

"I still think it's dull," she noted.

"Well then maybe I should Make It Shine," her fellow brunette commented smugly, pressing a button and lighting the letters and some stars in the backdrop; this impressed the others.

"Thanks Freddie," she muttered from the corner of her mouth; the tech wizard had helped with the circuitry, though he hadn't seen the backdrop when he did so.

"Ok, are we going to eat or what?" Jade asked impatiently.

"Oh yay, food," Cat voiced her agreement and they began to depart.

"Are you coming with us?" Freddie asked.

"Sure," she agreed and skipped to catch up with him as they left the building.

AN: Thanks for reading. Please drop me a review and let me know what you thought and do come back next week when the gang try their hand at Stage Fighting… PD